Market orders are not visible in the order book for any market participant and have no specific price limit, but are matched to the best available contra-side bid or offer. For example, a market that is twelve bid and fourteen offered will fill market orders to sell at twelve and market orders to buy at fourteen. Market orders are possible for both futures and options, but are not supported for strategies and futures calendar spreads.

Stop orders are orders that create market orders when the specified trigger price is reached. As market orders, stop orders are not visible in the order book for any market participant.
A buy stop order is an order placed at a price above the market that will trigger the creation of a market buy order when the market trades at the stop price or higher.

A sell stop order is placed below the market and creates a market order if the market trades at or below the stop price.

There is no guarantee that an order triggered by a stop will be filled at the stop price. Instead, it is treated the same as any other market order. A stop is only activated when an actual trade takes place that is at or through the stop. Even if both the bid and offer are through the stop price (for example, when both the bid and the offer are higher than the buy stop price), it will not activate the stop.

Stop orders are often referred to as stop-loss orders in that they are often used to protect a trader's position from deteriorating beyond a certain point and stopping further loss. Positions can be initiated or closed out using stop orders. Stops are available on most futures (except for pro rata matched futures) but are unavailable on options.

Limit orders include a specified price limit, and may not be executed at a price worse than that limit. They are divided into restricted limit orders and unrestricted limit orders.

Unrestricted limit orders

These orders are used in all markets and have a duration attached to them.

• Good-for-day (GFD) is also known as a day order. All orders are assumed to be GFD unless otherwise specified. The validity of a GFD order ends at the close of that day's Trading Period. GFD orders entered during the post-trading period of a given trading day will be valid for the following trading day.
  
• Good-till-cancelled (GTC) is also known as an open order in some markets. This order remains valid until it is executed, it is cancelled, or the contract expires. All orders are automatically cancelled one year after entry.
  
• Good-till-date (GTD) is similar to GTC but carries a specified date up to one year from entry on which the order is automatically cancelled.
  
  

Restricted limit orders

• Immediate-or-cancel (IOC) is to be filled immediately, either completely or to the extent possible; the portion that cannot be filled immediately is cancelled.
  
  

Closing auction only orders may be entered during the entire trading day, but are only active during the closing auction phase of the current business day. No price reasonability check is performed at order entry. This restriction type applies only to orders for price/time matched futures.

Although futures combinations have their own order books, these books are integrated in the order books for the individual 'legs'. Market orders and stop orders are not permitted for futures combinations. For unrestricted orders, a validity date may also be specified. Unrestricted futures combination orders that cannot match at initial order entry are automatically written to the combination order book.
Two types of futures combinations are permitted on the Eurex® system:

• Time spreads 
  
• Inter-product spreads
  

Time spreads

Time spreads combine two different maturities for futures on the same underlying. At any time, three time spreads are supported for products subject to price/time matching:

• first month/second month (for example March/June)
  
• second month/third month (for example June/September)
  
• first month/third month (for example March/September)
  

For pro rata matched futures products, all spreads between each pair of consecutive maturity months are supported.

The purchase of a combination means you buy the first (nearer to expiration) leg and sell the later leg, with the price limit reflecting the net price of the purchase and sale. For example, "Buy 5 MAR/JUN FDAX spreads at -25" represents an order to buy 5 March contracts and simultaneously sell 5 June contracts of the DAX® Futures. The prices of the purchase and the sale are individually unspecified, but the net of the price on the buy trade must be no greater than the price of the sell trade minus 25 points. The trader is not concerned with the price level of the contracts, but with the relationship between the two prices. If the order is filled, the trader is long the combination, i.e. he is long the nearby contract, but short the later contract.

Futures time spread combinations are fully integrated with the order books for the individual legs. Orders will automatically be matched against either the outright order books for the individual legs (sometimes called an 'implied-in' price) or the separate combination order book, depending on which book will yield the better price. For time spreads, it is possible to enter prices with an increment smaller than the tick size for single leg orders in the same product.

If the order is not immediately executed or cancelled, it enters the combination order book. Due to the integration of the combination book and the books for the individual legs, the open combination order will generate a synthetic price in the later leg.

The counterparties for the two legs may not be the same. Individual legs are treated as separate trades for position and transaction management purposes, although they are related to each other through their single order number.

If the conditions of the order book change, the synthetic prices will change accordingly.

Inter-product spreads (IPS)

The Eurex® system also supports inter-product spreads (IPSs) for futures. The buyer of an inter-product spread buys the first and sells the second component similar to the time spread, but the components refer to different underlyings, usually with the same expiration month. Inter-product spreads are treated as separate products in the Eurex® system. Matched orders in Inter-product Spread products are posted to the two separate product legs. As with time spreads, a buy of an inter-product spread product results in a long position in one product and short position of another product. The Eurex® system does not directly permit negative pricing for inter-product spread orders; instead, an offset price is applied. At present, inter-product spreads are not set up for trading.

• option strategies, involving up to four option legs
  
• option volatility strategies, comprising a variety of option positions against an underlying futures (or, for equity options, LEPO) position
  

Strategies created and published by market participants are visible to the whole market and are traded via separate public order books (strategy order books) distinct from the regular option and futures order books. The matching algorithm for strategy orders is based on the principle of price/time priority.

Limit orders and quotes are supported for strategy trading. An order can have the restriction "immediate or cancel" (IOC), or no restriction. Market and stop orders are not supported.
At present, there are no specific Market-Making obligations for strategies. Market Makers who fulfill their quotation on request or, where applicable, Permanent Market Maker (PMM) or Advanced Market Maker (AMM) obligations automatically qualify for market maker refunds in strategies.

All strategies, open strategy orders and strategy quotes are removed at the end of the business day.


Strategy WizardSM demo
The following movies demonstrate strategy trading with DAX® Options. The Strategy WizardSM facility is also available for Eurex equity options, equity index options as well as fixed income options.